The Nov 11th Letter to the Editor has left me with some questions.
If Mrs. Davidson’s apologies are judged to be “empty, insincere, and condescending,” how, then, can any apology be effective? Is there some way to assure that no one will question our sincerity?
Would it have been preferable to name the two offended individuals, rather than to assume that they would be addressed as community members?
Who was considered a “threat”? Was a citizen “banned from attending or speaking at any further board meetings “? Was the FBI called at some point?
I do not recall hearing about authorities storming anyone’s door at “6 am with guns drawn. “Or their being arrested as “domestic terrorists”?
Perhaps I missed some recent local news; otherwise, I am completely perplexed regarding these references.
I hope that my questions are deemed sincere. Moreover, I hope that we all be given the benefit of seeking forgiveness when we fall short.
Sincerely,
Susan Miller Gowin
Regarding redistricting
I’m a little baffled at the redistricting comments, recently in the Sun. As I read through the article, I was a bit surprised to read that quite a few people do not realize that Alan Lowenthal is the congressional represented for Rossmoor right now. Then I came across an opinion piece by Councilman Moore about a possible “Beach Cities District”. The idea of Seal Beach having anything in common with San Clemente, besides being a beach town, does not exist.
Seal Beach is very unique as it borders LA County, close to 3 major freeways yet heavily relies on its neighboring cities for many amenities. Long Beach is incredibly vital to Seal Beach in a lot of ways. The imaginary County Line should not be a reason to not share representation with a city that influences our small beach town in so many ways.
The closest airport to Seal Beach is Long Beach Airport that is 6 miles away or less from nearly all of Seal Beach.
The flight pattern of planes landing at Long Beach Airport has a direct effect on many homes in Seal Beach. I would like to be represented by someone who has this in mind.
The San Gabriel River is in LA County and runs along Long Beach for approximately 6 miles. The river is by far the largest contributor to trash that washes up in Seal Beach. As a runner who runs this path, the amount of trash in the river should be a concern to every citizen in Seal Beach. I would like to be represented by someone who is cognizant of this problem and how it negatively affects our beach.
The latest proposal shows Seal Beach being separated from Rossmoor and Los Alamitos. This would result in the Los Alamitos Unified School District being separated at the state level. I cannot think of a scenario where this would be a good thing or even a neutral affect.
As a parent in this district I want a representative who has the entire school district in mind when educational decisions are made.
Lastly, like many others in Seal Beach, I spend a lot of time shopping and using Long Beach’s numerous amenities. Long Beach Town Center and Cerritos Mall are the closest major shopping areas.
The closest movie theater to Old Town/Hill is in Long Beach. Many childrens after school activities are in Long Beach, including dance, gymnastics and baseball.
A decent portion of Los Al high school graduates attend CSULB. You literally cannot get to College Park West without going through Long Beach.
Unfortunately (or fortunately), the population of CA has not kept up with the national average and we need to redraw our maps.
This should be done with the communities best interests in mind and how it will influence the members of Seal Beach. As you make your voice heard, please consider some of these important aspects.
Steve Miller
Seal Beach
In support of Meg Cutuli
I care deeply about where we live, the district I grew up going to school in, and the place we chose to raise our kids that I am willing to speak up.
The efforts taking place and the attempt to recall current school board members is based on many mistruths that will negatively impact our kids in several ways.
I urge you to please learn the facts and do your own research before signing any recall petition.
This recall specifically affects someone whom I admire, respect and has proven herself to be an invaluable educational leader in this community ever since I first met her nearly 40 years ago.
Meg Cutuli has been volunteering her time for our district since I was at McGaugh elementary in the 1980s. And for the past 21 years, she has devoted herself to our community’s kids by serving on the school board – putting all of our kids’ best interests ahead of anything else. She spends multiple days and nights a week visiting school campuses, walking the classrooms, attending sporting events, musicals, plays, awards assemblies, graduations, and more. You name it and she is there. She also spends many of her weekends in Sacramento on official school board duty and sits on numerous other boards across Orange County. She is always looking ahead to see what’s coming down the pike when it comes to educational issues, is well-versed in nearly every school-related program, and is an integral reason our kids were in the classroom last year when much of the state and the rest of the county was not.
I’ve read, listened and watched opposing sides on this issue and continue to do so. I’m saddened that so much of it is based on misleading information and inaccurate statistics. Please ask questions for yourself, understand what’s at the heart of the matter and make your own informed decisions, instead of simply going along with what’s repeated on social media or influenced political ideology without substantiated facts.
Recalling a board member for following state mandated guidelines and making decisions based on what’s best for all of our students, not just one group or the other, is extremely disheartening and misdirected. Following these guidelines allows our district to continue to receive necessary funds because we are a public district and if not followed could negatively affect our district budget. Furthermore, our small school district cannot afford this recall financially. Plus, the turmoil alone will cause an unnecessary distraction at a time when our classrooms are just getting back to some sort of normalcy. It is our kids who will suffer the most with loss of funds inside the classroom and having funds reappropriated to pay for the recall instead of going towards their education.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions to stakeholders on this important issue and engage in meaningful conversations with those you may not think you agree with before putting your signature on a piece of paper. At the least, we owe that to our children and our community.
Our kids deserve our energy focused on them. I know each one of these board members care deeply about our kids’ best interest because I’ve witnessed and/or worked with all five of them personally on campuses, in classrooms, at district events, and volunteering or managing district fundraisers for years.
Please ask questions, consider both sides of the issue, and let’s come together as a community to set a positive example for our kids.
Lauren DeNinno
Seal Beach Resident and Parent
Email Letters to the Editor to editor@sunnews.org and CC to editor2@sunnews.org.
